Annual Tax and Fee Comparison

The City regularly conducts a study of the costs of taxes and utilities in Lake Oswego and how they compare to other communities in the Portland metropolitan area. The comparison is a snapshot in time and will likely change each year as communities add or decrease debt, pass bonds or new taxes, or increase rates for infrastructure projects.

The cities used in the comparison include Beaverton, Gresham, Hillsboro, Lake Oswego, Milwaukie, Oregon City, Portland, Sherwood, Tigard, Tualatin, West Linn, and Wilsonville. In addition to property taxes and utility rates, private utilities such as Northwest Natural Gas, PGE, and solid waste and recycling services are included to compare total basic household utility costs across jurisdictions. Note that the comparison uses a household assessed value of $330,000 for tax comparisons, and the private utility costs are based on average household use in Oregon.

The information is obtained through the County assessor offices, Department of Energy, city fee schedules, and U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey.